Remembered Bonds
by mostlypsychotic
Summary: Set during Bioshock 2. Two years after her death, Siobhan is resurrected into a Big Daddy suit. As she adapts to the change, she learns of her purpose: to help Subject Delta, and to rescue her friend, Nick, who is trapped with none other than Eleanor.
1. Chapter 1

"Did it work? She's not moving."

"Give it a second. Let her get used to it.

Siobhan's mind was in a haze, and the sounds were mixing together around her. A timid, shaky voice belonging to a girl, the firm voices of an older woman and a man, the soft beeping of machines. Nothing seemed clear to her for a moment, until the woman's voice could be heard from directly in front of her.

"It says there's a pulse. Yes...she's alive. Siobhan, if you can hear me, don't panic. We have resurrected you, in a way. However, there was only one option for doing so at the time. Are you familiar with the Big Daddy prototype?"

Siobhan could feel herself tensing, and a machine that she assumed was a heart monitor began beeping rapidly. She attempted to speak, but no sound came out.

_What did you do to me? _she wanted to scream.

"Siobhan!" The voice had returned now. "Try to calm down. You're still in critical condition, and straining yourself could be fatal. Yes, we grafted you into a Big Daddy suit. I'm sorry, but this was the only way we could save you." Siobhan's stomach turned at the thought of the grafting process that made a Big Daddy, but forced her heart to beat normally. "Do you remember anything from before? Does the name Sofia Lamb have any relevance to you?"

_Of course..._

The memories of Siobhan's final moments returned to her in a mental flood, and she tensed yet again.

She had been with Nick that night. Nick, her closest friend in Rapture. Quiet and jumpy, but friendly. Sofia Lamb had been the one who tried to take him away from her, to set him up with her daughter, Eleanor. Siobhan had helped Nick escape, but they had been careless for a mere minute. The two had come to a group of Lamb's cronies, who had promptly kidnapped Nick. When Siobhan tried to fight them for him, they had been merciless. Siobhan still remembered the feeling of bullets entering her body, one after the other, until she hit the ground. In less than a minute, things had turned to black. At least until now.

"I assume by that silence, you do remember," the woman said again. "You see, a few years back, almost the same thing happened. Eleanor Lamb's Big Daddy was killed, and Eleanor was hidden away. However, Lamb realized two things since- that Subject Delta was alive, and that the Lamb name was in danger. That's where Nick came in. With Delta on the loose, Lamb refused to allow her daughter to leave her clutches, so she brought somebody in for her. The only way for her to do that, of course, was by kidnapping him as well." The story over, the woman reached for one of the tubes that was still connected to Siobhan, and trailed her finger down it. "You _can _speak, you know. Maybe the shock has gotten to you, but you will be able to." Siobhan tried to force a sound out, but again, nothing. "Also, it may be hard for you to function at first- the Big Daddy suit is a lot to handle, especially for a young woman. You'll get used to it, though." Her hand moved from the tube to the tank it was connected to, and a lever on top of it. "Find Subject Delta, Siobhan. You'll know him when you see him. You both have the same goal, and the same means of achieving it. All you have to do is communicate with him, and he will cooperate, with any luck. But Rapture is a dangerous place, and you better be prepared for anything out there."

"Are you almost done going on? You'll be able to communicate with her once she's out in the open as well, you know." As the man's voice sounded from across the room, the woman nodded at him before turning to Siobhan again.

"When you wake up, your movements and senses should all be working. If not, find somebody. You'll figure out soon who's on your side in this place." She pulled the lever, and Siobhan felt a gas seeping into her suit. She almost immediately felt drowsy, and the feeling increased as the hissing sound grew louder. As she lost consciousness once more, the woman's voice could be heard one final time.

"Good luck. Subject Delta is waiting for you."


	2. Chapter 2

When Siobhan woke up for the second time since her transformation, she found that her head was spinning. She was unaccustomed to these strange feelings- the fact that she could feel herself looking through the window of her mask, the bulky suit that she was trapped in, and...

She lifted her right arm to inspect it, and found that where her hand should have been, there was a large, rusty drill instead.

"Hmm..." she said aloud. Even the sound of her own voice startled her- it was as if two people were talking for her- her regular voice, and a deeper, almost robotic voice underlying it.

"Oh, oh! It's awake!"

"Yes, finally!"

Siobhan turned her head, wondering where the voices had come from. Two Splicers stood over her, watching her with excited eyes. With a cry, she jumped up, and realized that the only reason she was alive was because she was in a cage that cut off the Splicers from her as she slept. A look around revealed that Splicers were all around, and Siobhan tried to count them as they shifted around her cage.

_Twenty-five. Dammit._

Looking down at the drill that made up her arm, she wondered how she controlled it. She moved her arm forward and concentrated, wondering if that would be enough.

The drill whirred to life, knocking the door of the cage off its hinges and sending the Splicers into a frenzy.

"It's out! It's out!"

Panicking, Siobhan let out a garbled battle cry and ran forward, her drill still whirring powerfully. She caught a Splicer on it, and it screamed as blood shot out from where it had been impaled. Throwing the fresh body aside, Siobhan moved forward, trying to keep her eyes open and avoid the nausea that killing so many things at one time brought her. Luckily, it only took a few minutes to get the surprisingly weak enemies felled, and as the battle ended, Siobhan felt strangely satisfied. However, as she looked down at her now blood-stained drill, she realized that it was out of fuel, and didn't work as anything but a defense tool now.

_If I could use my mind to control that thing...do I have anything else in this body of mine? _

As if on cue, the drill vanished into her arm, replaced by a rivet gun.

_There's probably a limit as to how convenient this should be_, Siobhan thought with a scoff, walking through the shallow pool that the leaking ceiling had formed in the middle of the room. For a while she wandered around aimlessly, in search of any clue for where she was meant to be walking.

She had to admit it, though, she was amazed at the state of Rapture now. Every room, stairwell and hallway was exactly the same- dark, damp, blood-spattered, and littered with ammo and random foods. Every now and then, she'd come across a disfigured, maimed body, often with intestines revealed, and would take the opportunity to just search its pockets to find more supplies. Already, she was finding herself desensitized to these bodies, which she guessed was a good thing- something told her that there would be a lot of them on her way to Nick.

Her thought process was halted as she passed another door. Backtracking, she noticed a dim glowing light coming from underneath it. She only paused for a moment as she retracted the rivet gun into her arm and reached for the handle with her newly free hand.

_If there are more Splicers in there, I can take them...right? _

Deciding that she could, she opened the door, and was immediately hit with a mental wave. Her head pounding, she gripped the door hinge, wincing as she tried to see the source of the light.

"Oh, my God...it's really you. Siobhan, you're alive..."

A voice was echoing inside her skull, a voice that wasn't hers. Who was this? Who had invaded her mind?

"Yes, I assumed you'd be asking that," the voice said. Of course it could read her thoughts. "Siobhan, you have never met me, but you will...my name is Eleanor Lamb. I know why you're coming my way. I know what you're looking for. But listen to me for a moment, okay? Nick is still with me, as my mother wants. However, his purpose has not been served yet, in her opinion. Though the two of us have formed a bit of a bond through these past years, nothing physical has come from it. We don't have the emotional ability to do anything of the sort." If Siobhan had still been in a human form, she would of blushed furiously at the very thought, despite her confusion. She still found it weird that Sofia Lamb was considering forcing her daughter to fuck anyone she could find, just to keep the family name going.

"Yes, it's very strange," Eleanor said, sounding a little embarrassed. "Mother...she's gone rather insane, in my opinion. Siobhan...I can handle things here right now. I'll make sure Mother doesn't do anything to Nick while we wait for you to arrive. But don't come here without my father. I need him the most right now, and it may be a selfish thing to ask...but find my father, Subject Delta, as you were told to do." Eleanor paused, and the light began to fade, revealing what seemed to be a glowing jar next to a bottle of fireflies. "I've sent you this plasmid...Telekinesis. It isn't much, but you'll find more of them if you collect ADAM on your journey. For now, try to control it." Eleanor suddenly stopped speaking, and when she started again, she sounded more urgent. "Nick's waking up now...I don't want him knowing that I'm speaking to you. Good luck, Siobhan. We'll talk again soon."

The light faded away, leaving nothing in the way of the plasmid. Nervously, Siobhan took the needle from its storage spot on the top of the container, watching the glowing liquid seep into it before pulling it out. Closing her eyes, she decided just to get it over with, and pushed the syringe into her wrist.

_Author's Note: Bah, cliffhanger-ish chapter ending. I didn't want to go any further now, because- and I'm going to be spoiling the next chapter for you all here, in a way- I want to introduce Sinclair in the next leg of the story, and if I do that this is going to be a long-ass chapter. But I'll try to get Chapter 3 up as soon as possible, so make sure to check back soon. Now, for a couple of things. One: I've played Bioshock 2, and I know the first plasmid you get is Electro Bolt...but something just told me to venture away from the canon a little and make Telekinesis first. Heheh. Two: If I happen to get any terminology wrong, feel free to correct me. Three: I'm also aware that most Big Daddies can't actually speak, but communicate with grunting and similar noises. And four: I'm probably not going to try and write out Sinclair's accent, and leave that to your imagination. Well, enough from me. See you next time!_


	3. Chapter 3

To her surprise, the syringe hadn't hurt a bit. All there was in its place was a startling surge of energy that caused her entire arm to twist and spasm violently. Siobhan watched fearfully through her mask as she lost control of her arm for a moment- and then it ended. Looking down at her arm, which still twitched every now and then, she couldn't help but wonder what had just happened.

"Hello? Hello? Can you hear me, kid?"

Great...more voices coming out of nowhere. This one was a man's voice, with a nice accent that she couldn't quite place.

"Yeah, I can hear you. Who are you?" she replied grudgingly.

"Ah, there we go. Glad to see you're up and kicking again. I see you've got yourself a plasmid, too. Eleanor gave it to you, am I right?"

"I guess so...you didn't answer my question. Who _are _you?" Siobhan repeated. She would have glared, but she didn't know exactly what or who to glare at, so she settled with sounding annoyed with the voice.

"Of course. The name's Augustus Sinclair. And you...I know who you are, kid. Eighteen years old...that's about Eleanor's age by now, huh...and you're forced to live your life in a big suit."

Eighteen...had she really been dead for two years? How long had they tried to bring her to life, that she hadn't decayed over two years?

"Okay, Sinclair...why exactly are you talking to me? And how? Where are you?" She fired off each question with a wary look around.

"You know," Sinclair said, avoiding the question yet again, "you don't have to talk out loud. I can hear your thoughts, so you can just think and I'll be able to answer anything you wanna know."

"How-" Siobhan paused, then forced herself to focus on the question.

_How are you hearing my thoughts?_

"You'd be surprised what radio technology can do these days, kid. It's what Rapture's all about."

_That's just weird. Get out of my head! _

"It's not as simple as getting outta your head," Sinclair said, amused. "You gave us this power when you became a Big Daddy- anyone with the technology can get into your head and talk to you."

_No way in hell! Why? _Noticing a wall, Siobhan walked over, ready to knock Sinclair's voice out of her mind.

"Like I said, it's not that simple. You're just gonna give yourself a headache that way," Sinclair said as the Big Daddy gripped the wall.

_I don't care. I want you out._

"Do you want to get back to Nick or not?"

Now Siobhan stopped, letting go of the wall, and turned away.

_You know where Nick is, _she thought in as deadpan a voice she could muster from inside her brain.

"That's right. If you 'get me out of your head,' as you so kindly put it, you're gonna have to get there alone. But if you take me on board, I'll show you the way. See, we wanna get you to Persephone, where Nick and Eleanor are waiting, but we _also _want to get you to wherever Subject Delta is, remember? Lucky for you, I know how to get to both those places, but you're gonna need to trust me."

_Because trusting a voice in my head is definitely going to end well for me_.

"No need to get sarcastic, Miss Siobhan. Are you in or not? If you're not up to it, I can just keep working with Delta, and who knows if Nick's gonna get rescued in that case?" Siobhan's shoulders tensed, and Sinclair went on. "Sorry, but I'm telling it like it is. Delta's trying to rescue Eleanor, and that's pretty much it." Now Siobhan sighed, something telling her that the man who was now in her mind for some reason was right.

_What do you want me to do?_

"Now that's the Big Daddy way I was hoping for, kid. You need to get to Fontaine Futuristics. Delta's there right now, trying to get the trains working again so he can get to Persephone too. If you hurry, you'll make it before he finishes up there and gets on his way again. But, like I said, the trains are down. There's one way to get there, and that's underwater. There's a flooding chamber nearby, and you've gotta use that to get into the sea."

Almost on an impulse, Siobhan left the room, as if the chamber itself was beckoning to her. Sure enough, a trip down a few metal staircases led to the chamber in question.

"You might want to put your weapons away for a little bit. We won't have time for repairs," Sinclair warned. Obediently, Siobhan retracted the rivet gun into her arm before pulling on the lever. The door to the sea opened as the one to the building closed, flooding the room with water. Gasping with surprise, Siobhan found herself being thrust forward by the force of the water, and landed on the sand below.

"You alright there, kid?"

_Just a little mistake_, Siobhan replied, deciding to avoid any sarcastic remarks for a while as she began to swim forward.

"Whoa there," Sinclair said again. "You don't wanna go too fast there, you know. You might miss out on something vital..."

_Like what?_

"Like what? What's the lifeblood of Rapture, kid? Think about it!"

Out of the corner of her helmet's window, a glowing red object caught Siobhan's attention.

_Of course...ADAM._

"Welcome to the party, kid. Those two years are showing."

Siobhan squeezed the slug, ignoring the loud squishing noise it made as she did so, and allowed the ADAM to drip into the tube on her back.

"Now _that's _what's gonna help you down here, kid. But don't worry about finding more. Try looking up."

Siobhan did so, and found herself facing the large skyscraper that marked the entrance of Fontaine Futuristics. Heading up to the chamber at the front, Siobhan paused again, her hand on the lever.

_Is this some kind of trap? _she asked suddenly.

"Now, now. I may seem like a tricky bastard, but that doesn't mean I'm gonna lead you right into your second death when there's someone to be rescued. I've got a bone to pick with Lamb, myself, and I'm willing to help you pick your own. Now get in there. Delta's not gonna stick around."


	4. Chapter 4

When the water was drained from the room, Siobhan wiped the remaining drops from her helmet, looking forward at the hallway that had just been revealed. Something about the sudden change between water and land made her head spin, but she ignored it as she walked out and looked down the dim hallway, the light from her suit illuminating the floor below. She was starting to realize how tired she was becoming, and her limbs were beginning to feel heavy.

"Well, that was bound to happen," Sinclair said suddenly, startling Siobhan back into an alert state. "After all, that's a big suit, and you're practically a kid."

_Are you seriously going to just pop into my head whenever you feel like it?_

"Oh, I wasn't reading your thoughts, kid. It's just obvious." Siobhan shook her head, trying to keep herself from thinking a coherent phrase and letting the man know just what she was thinking. However, Sinclair himself seemed distracted, and he soon changed the subject.

"You should probably get your guns ready...listen." In the moment's silence, Siobhan could hear the sounds of rapid gunfire and screaming from the opening at the end of the hall.

"Hm?" she said aloud, preparing her rivet gun as she went to investigate.

When she arrived in the main room, she was greeted by a giant ball of flame flying past her head. Screaming, she flung herself back behind the door, hiding herself as well as any Big Daddy could. She half-expected somebody to come after her, guns ablaze, to finish her off, but it appeared that the fireball had simply been off-course. When she looked back around the door, she was facing a group of Splicers similar to the ones that had 'welcomed' her when she woke up. They were occupied with a Big Daddy, a Bouncer series, who was gunning them down one by one. The Bouncer seemed exhausted, even with the ferocity with which he fought. The Splicers also seemed to be jeering as they fought, infuriating the Bouncer.

"You missed!"

"Some father you are! Look at her, she's terrified!"

"You're _done_!"

"Daddy, look out!"

Siobhan looked closer at the scene as the last voice rang out. That voice was higher, more panicked- it couldn't have possibly belonged to one of the fighting Splicers. Sure enough, as the Bouncer stepped back to fire his next round of bullets at the crowd, Siobhan caught a glimpse of a little girl crouching behind him, hugging herself and looking terrified.

_Holy shit! _

"You saw her, didn't you?" Sinclair asked, his voice surprisingly calm.

_There's a kid with him! Why is there a fucking kid in the middle of a fight?_

"Now, now. I'll explain everything as soon as-"

The remainder of Sinclair's words were drowned out by the cackling of a Houdini Splicer as it appeared behind the Bouncer, sending another fireball down. The Bouncer roared out one last time as it collapsed at last, leaving the girl looking down at its body.

"Wait, kid-"

Siobhan charged out, sending a rivet through the Houdini's chest as she ran, and proceeded to take guard in front of the girl, shooting at the remaining Splicers until the threat that had destroyed the first Big Daddy was gone. Now she was left looking down at the girl she had rescued, though the girl herself hadn't acknowledged her yet. As she sat and sniffled at the Bouncer's side, Sinclair took the opportunity to worm his way back into Siobhan's mind.

"What we have here is a Little Sister. They've got the ADAM slug planted inside them, making them an easy target to the Splicers. None of them leave their hiding place without a Big Daddy like the one she had, but if the Daddy gets killed, the daughter's on her own. Luckily for this one, you're here, but that leads to the next thing. Now you have her...what are you gonna do with her?"

_What do you mean? Am I supposed to do something with her? _

"Well, no one's making you do any one thing, but there's really two options. You can get her to a vent and put her inside, and she'll crawl away to safety. You can get some ADAM from the whole rescuing thing, but it isn't much. Now, if you harvest her, you get tons of ADAM, and that's good...but the thing is, by harvesting, there's no way the kid's gonna survive."

Siobhan tensed, looking down at the Little Sister. She had finished mourning the loss of her old guardian, and was now looking up at Siobhan expectantly.

"Daddy!" she chirped, holding up her hands. Siobhan's heart caught in her throat.

_You mean...people...they kill these little girls? Just for ADAM?_

"That's right. Some people are that tough. Of course, that's the fun of it," Sinclair said deviously. "She's in your hands now...it all depends on what matters most to you."


	5. Chapter 5

The Little Sister was still smiling up at Siobhan, the disturbing conversation not reaching her ears. Sinclair had finally gone silent, allowing the Big Daddy to ponder both his words and the complete trust that the girl had in her.

"Daddy," she repeated, stretching up further as if insisting that Siobhan pick her up. Siobhan obeyed, taking the child up and putting her on her shoulder. Inside her helmet, she could hear Sinclair chuckle.

"Playing the good guy, I see. Well, suit yourself. You're a lot like Delta, kid. You go through a bunch of shit trying to get the ADAM, and then you sell yourself short. But I suppose it makes you the moral one in this situation. Now, get her to a vent. You'll be able to make the final choice then."

_I find it hard to work with someone who advocates killing little kids, _Siobhan thought coldly, though she doubted it would make Sinclair feel too guilty. Sure enough, he just chuckled again.

"I don't advocate the killing, kid. I just advocate getting as much ADAM as you can, so you can help yourself get back to Nick."

_You make it sound like all I care about is getting back to him. It matters a lot to me, but that doesn't mean I'm going to go on a rampage and destroy everything in my path just to do it. I'll fight things that threaten me, but I'm not about to hurt a little kid just to get what I want, _Siobhan explained. For a moment, Sinclair even went quiet. When he spoke, he sounded a little less confident than he had before.

"...Well. I was wondering when you'd say something like that. Now I see what I've got on my plate here. You really are like Delta." Part of Siobhan wanted to probe further and ask what he meant, but she decided against it.

_Okay, then. Now, do you know where a vent is? _

"I've got a bit of an idea," Sinclair said, relieved that he wouldn't have to explain anything about what he had just said. "See that staircase to your right?" Siobhan turned and started walking towards it, as Sinclair instructed her further.

"Daddy, we're leaving all the angels," the Little Sister complained as Siobhan began down the stairs.

"Um...sorry," Siobhan replied, not quite sure what the girl meant.

"What she means," Sinclair said, "is that you're leaving all those ADAM-filled bodies behind without getting any reward in the process."

_I see. Well, that's too bad, because I have a damn vent to find, _Siobhan replied, feeling a little bit irritated. She did laugh a little, though, mainly as an afterthought. _I've gotta say, I'm not used to being called somebody's 'daddy.' _

As the two made their way through a few corridors and to an open room, the Little Sister suddenly clambered off of Siobhan's shoulder, landing nimbly on the ground and scurrying forward.

"Come on, Daddy!" she called. "I feel a _big _angel, now!" Worrying that she would find herself face-to-face with another Splicer, Siobhan ran after her, hoping that her heavy footsteps wouldn't draw attention.

The Little Sister had found the dead body of a Brute Splicer, and was leaning up to extract ADAM from its stomach. Siobhan looked around warily as the process began, and Sinclair's next words confirmed her fears.

"Be careful, kid. Extracting ADAM's a dangerous process. You're bound to run into some hungry Splicers during it, so get ready to fire."

As if on cue, Siobhan heard a maniacal chattering behind her, and whirled around, machine gun at the ready. As the Splicers poured into the room and Siobhan killed each one, the Little Sister continued to gather, seemingly unaware of the chaos around her. Minutes seemed endless as Siobhan fought ferociously, glancing back every now and then to make sure the girl wasn't in trouble and wondering how long the process took.

"Daddy, I'm done!" the Little Sister called at last. Siobhan finished her part by blowing the head off of a Leadhead Splicer, and then silence fell over the room once more. Returning the Little Sister to her place with one hand, Siobhan kept her weapon at the ready. She could feel the girl leaning over her shoulder, opening the ADAM-filled tube on the Big Daddy's back, and pouring the new ADAM in with it.

_What's she up to?_

"That's how she's thanking you, kid. She'll give you any ADAM she gathers, as long as you keep her safe. But the vent's right up ahead, so you should just go ahead and rescue her...unless you're still up for harvesting, I mean."

_Not a chance in hell, _Siobhan replied, searching the adjoining room. Sure enough, she could see a vent up against the wall, and breathed a sigh of relief. She could save the little one now. Before she could go through the rescuing process, though, the Little Sister climbed off of Siobhan's shoulder yet again and hugged her leg.

"Daddy, I feel another one!"

"Another angel?" Siobhan asked, playing along. The girl shook her head quickly. In the distance, heavy footsteps similar to Siobhan's were getting nearer.

"No, no. A friend!"

A second Little Sister arrived in the doorway across from them. Upon seeing Siobhan's Little Sister, this new girl gave a squeal of delight.

"A friend!" she echoed as the two met up, beaming. Siobhan looked up from the innocent scene in front of her as the new girl's Big Daddy arrived, and froze.

This wasn't a normal Big Daddy. It was too tall to be a Bouncer, too lean for a Rosie, and too advanced for a Rumbler. However, unlike other Alphas, it wasn't attacking her immediately, and hostile Alphas didn't have Little Sisters, anyway.

_Could it be...?_

"Well, hot damn," Sinclair said, surprised. "I would've thought one of you would attack. This makes things easier, I guess. Siobhan, do you know who this is?"

_I have an idea._

"Well, you're probably right. Siobhan, say hello to Subject Delta."


	6. Chapter 6

The problem with meeting up with another Big Daddy was the fact that it was impossible to read their facial expressions. Siobhan couldn't tell what Delta was thinking as he slowly looked her up and down, trying to distinguish a possible threat from her. Not that she trusted him any more. For a few moments, neither of them moved. Even the Little Sisters, becoming aware of the tension between their two Daddies, stopped their playing and watched nervously. Sinclair was the one to speak first.

"There...I think I can talk to you both at the same time...yep, it's working. Listen to me for a second. You can fight each other if you want, but it's not gonna solve anything with Nick and Eleanor. Delta, I already know you won't be able to tell Siobhan here your side, so I'm gonna go ahead and tell her myself, got it?" Siobhan watched as Delta nodded reluctantly. "But first...those Little Sisters aren't adding anything by waiting around for their daddies to figure stuff out, so why don't you give them a hand into the vent?" Siobhan and Delta simultaneously reached down for their Little Sisters, and Siobhan immediately moved towards the vent in front of them.

There was a sharp smacking noise as Delta reached over and slapped her hand away. Both Little Sisters gasped, and Siobhan was stunned. Delta gestured at his Little Sister, motioning for Siobhan to watch, then lifted one of his hands over her head. Siobhan panicked as the girl's entire head lit up, and looked away, afraid to watch anymore.

"Thank you, Daddy."

Siobhan looked back, amazed. Not only was the girl alive, but her glowing eyes had turned back into normal ones. The girl waved at her new friend once more, then clambered into the vent and vanished. Now Delta held out his hands, offering to rescue Siobhan's Little Sister as well. Siobhan agreed, and watched as he repeated the process with the second girl.

With both Little Sisters safely in the vent and crawling away through the hidden tunnels of the city, the two Big Daddies returned to their tense state, leaving Sinclair to mediate or instigate as he pleased.

"Hm. Siobhan, looks like you owe Delta one for teaching you how to rescue, huh? If you hadn't done that, she'd still be a mutant."

_Don't rub it in. I didn't know._

"I understand that much, kid. But you could stop being so nervous. I can tell all the way from here. He's not gonna attack unless you provoke him." Siobhan looked back at Delta, to find the light from his helmet still pointed directly at her.

_I don't trust him, _Siobhan replied bluntly. _I probably should, but I don't._ Delta grunted, as if he could hear her thought process as well. Siobhan winced as he stepped forward, drill still at the ready, though it wasn't yet powered up. On her side, Sinclair chuckled yet again.

"Intimidating, isn't he? He doesn't trust you either, you know. He's waiting to hear proof that he should, as a matter of fact. But first...I suppose I should tell you the story."

_Story? _

"Of course. If you're willing to hear it, that is. Maybe your mind would be put at ease if you heard Delta's side to this meeting." Siobhan nodded. "Excellent. I remember it, too. Ten years ago, wasn't it, Delta? Him and Eleanor were just walking around the city, looking for ADAM, and Eleanor walked right into a trap. Delta came to her rescue, but guess who was there? Sofia Lamb, Eleanor's real mother. Made Delta shoot himself, and kidnapped Eleanor to keep him from getting back to her if he ever woke up. Eight years later, Nick gets kidnapped and you get attacked by a bunch of psycho Lamb-followers. Delta only woke up a few weeks before you, but exactly two years after that happened to you. Ever since he woke up, he's been looking for Eleanor, just like a devoted father. But Lamb knows. She knows why Delta's coming her way, and she's got all of Rapture out to stop him. Splicers, Alphas, machines- Delta's got hell on his heels, but he barely cares. All that matters to him is getting back to Eleanor. Now, he meets up with another Big Daddy, one that looks like him but isn't attacking- what's he gonna think? You couldn't be an Alpha if you've got a Little Sister with you, so you seem suspicious, understand?"

Siobhan bit back a bitter laugh. That was exactly her own thought process when she had come face-to-face with Delta for the first time. How ironic.

_I understand...but does that mean he isn't like me, after all? He'll kill anybody to get back to Eleanor, won't he? _

"Not entirely," Sinclair said calmly. "But you'll learn about that if he takes you in." Siobhan looked back at Delta, who had finally lowered his weapon and was now watching the girl intently. "Let's see you work your magic, kid."

_Author's Note: Hm, short chapter. I wonder why it took me so long to write it, in that case. XD Plus, I'm starting to suspect that my laptop has a virus, so if that's the case, I'll (obviously) stop publishing. So...yeah. See you next time._


	7. Chapter 7

With Delta's side of the story over, Siobhan felt herself becoming a little less wary of the Big Daddy. Still, as Sinclair said, she had her own impression to make before the feeling could be mutual.

"Um...my name's Siobhan," she began, inwardly cringing at how awkward her voice sounded, and tried to make it more professional. "Sinclair told me your story, Delta. You're looking for Eleanor Lamb, and I'm willing to help you. The boy who Sofia Lamb kidnapped to keep with Eleanor was a friend of mine, you see...she killed me just to get him. We're going to the same place, with the same purpose, so it seems like it would be best if we went together. Think about it, Delta. Two Big Daddies, each trying to get back to the person who matters most to us...we'd practically be unstoppable, wouldn't you say?" Here, Siobhan stepped forward, trying to read Delta's body movements for a response. "If we fight each other here, all it's going to do is delay how long Eleanor and Nick will be waiting for us. If we go our separate ways, things will just take longer. So, what's your verdict?"

With her speech over, Delta seemed to have relaxed a little, though he still watched every movement with sharp head movements. After a while, he grunted again, and Sinclair spoke.

"That was pretty impressive, kid. You got Delta to be a little more lenient, at least. I suppose it'll depend on what he tells me next."

The following silence was the most dramatic Siobhan had ever experienced. Delta was apparently still speaking to Sinclair in his head, as there was absolutely no sound in her own.

Suddenly, Delta snapped out of his trance-like state, stepped up to Siobhan, and shoved her towards the doorway.

_Wh-what the hell?_

The male Big Daddy stepped around her, heading for the same doorway, then waved his hand as a gesture for her to follow.

"Told you," Sinclair said. "Congratulations, kid, you've got him on your side." Siobhan relaxed immediately, watching Delta vanish through the doorway.

_Thank God. I thought for a moment that things were going to-_

"That's great, but you might wanna hurry," Sinclair interrupted. Nodding to both herself and Sinclair, Siobhan hurried forward after Delta. Now Sinclair could relax at last for the time being, his main goal for the two complete.

"So," he said to both of them in an offer to break the ice, "let's get moving, then. I'll tell you how to get out of here, and then we're moving on to Persephone."

"I've gotta say, I can barely remember these things," Siobhan said, looking down at the body of a recently killed Houdini Splicer. As a human, she had been terrified of them and their ability to materialize when she least expected it, but something about the suit gave her a little more bravery, as well as the weapons needed to destroy the threat, of course.

Delta nodded in agreement, slightly frustrated. Siobhan tended to linger over deaths, talk about them, and root through the bodies for supplies, which completely contrasted with Delta's need to move forward as fast as he could. As Siobhan crouched down to search the Splicer's pockets, he resisted the urge to walk off, but only with help from Sinclair.

"Uh, Siobhan...I hate to be a killjoy, but we need to get moving, you know? Your friend over there isn't liking the atmosphere," he lied. Siobhan stood up and nodded.

"Sorry about that," she mumbled. Delta grunted, the same means of communication as usual. Siobhan still wasn't accustomed to the fact that she was the only one talking out loud in their entire group, and it made things difficult when Sinclair was the only way she could get information from Delta.

_Still, _she thought grudgingly, hoping Sinclair wouldn't hear, _it's all I have. I need to focus on what I _do _have, so I can get there. _

The screen of the security camera was cracked and hazy, but the image of the two Big Daddies was still visible. Sofia Lamb loomed over it, her cold eyes gazing at this new threat. As much as she hated to admit it, this made her uneasy- the fact that they had _both _been resurrected, and that their mindsets were similar as well.

_Because of that, they won't waste time in getting here. They'll do whatever it takes to exact revenge. _

She switched off the camera, allowing an exasperated sigh to escape her lips as she left the security office. The Splicers wouldn't be enough. Hell, she could send troops of Splicers towards the two, and it wouldn't stop them. What was the point in taking the time and effort to make useless attempts at wounding them?

She neared her own office, a knowing smile making its way onto her face. If attacks on the body were useless, then the other option was obvious. An attack on the mentality of the pair, one that would hopefully destroy the alliance altogether.

A glance into Sofia's prison revealed a boy of eighteen, borrowing Eleanor's bed for restless sleep. Across the room, Eleanor stood as if on guard, refusing to make eye contact with her mother, though she was aware of her presence. Sofia turned away, her decision made.

"You will help me make my point, Nick," she murmured, though the boy Siobhan held so dear couldn't hear.


	8. Chapter 8

Eleanor had watched the murder of Siobhan from her prison. That had been enough to secure her resentment towards her mother. She had come to expect the cruelty and unrelenting behavior towards others, but to tear apart a bond in the same way as she had torn apart Eleanor's just seemed so horrific to her.

She remembered the moment well- watching the screen with wide eyes as her mother's 'army' of Leadhead Splicers was positioned in the dark. They knew where Nick was, what his weakness would be. Sure enough, it only took a moment for Nick to arrive in the room, unaware and unarmed.

_Run! _Eleanor had wanted to scream. _Get out of there! Get back to your friend! _

To her surprise, she had felt hopeless tears spilling as she watched the scene unfold. A Splicer grabbed Nick's arms, shoving him roughly to the ground and inducing a cry from the boy. As the two struggled, her mother had come out of hiding, motioned for the Splicer to move aside, and picked up Nick herself. For a moment, he didn't move, simply looking terrified of his captor.

"Nick?"

A new figure was on the screen now. Eleanor's heart sank as she recognized her to be Nick's friend, and she punched her pillow in frustration. Siobhan hadn't wasted a moment- she pulled out a gun, aimed over Nick's head at Sofia- and was immediately shot in the hand. With a scream of pain, the girl dropped her weapon and clutched the bleeding wound, looking at Sofia as she did so.

"Give...give him back..." she said through heavy breaths. On her end, Eleanor had nodded sharply, silently pleading with her mother to comply. Of course, she hadn't.

"He isn't your possession, Siobhan. He may be your _friend_, but that's all there is between the two of you," she said coldly. She turned Nick around now, so that the two could face each other. "And even so, you let him walk right into this trap." Siobhan winced, a mixture of pain and guilt. Eleanor heard a click as the Splicer next to the camera prepared his weapon, and flung herself off her bed, screaming.

She knew it was useless. She was completely alone in this bedroom, and no one would hear her sudden bout of insanity.

"You're no use to him," Sofia finished, "and you're certainly of no use to us."

That was the cue. The Splicers let loose with a flood of bullets, drowning out the rest of the audio to Eleanor. She watched helplessly as Siobhan's body convulsed with the impact, her face frozen with shock, as Nick screamed something and struggled violently to get out of Sofia's grasp, as Sofia watched without the slightest hint of remorse. The Splicers fired on for a full minute, the promise of ADAM motivating them past the realization that Siobhan had been killed only ten seconds in. At last, the constant stream of bullets halted, allowing Siobhan's body to hit the bloodstained floor, and silence fell over the room, only broken by Nick's sobbing. Sofia, still completely emotionless, dragged the boy away by the arm, and Eleanor was left watching as the screen went blank.

It had been two years since then, and Eleanor was still amazed at herself. She had watched countless citizens of Rapture drive themselves insane with ADAM, turning from respectable people to monsters, and some even taking lives in the process. Yet, she had never felt so much pity for anyone in the city except her new 'roommate' and his late best friend. She allowed herself to take a seat on the bed, causing Nick to shift a little in his own sleep, and looked up at the ceiling. Every day, it took restraint not to tell Nick the truth- that Siobhan was alive and coming his way, and that she had made contact with her. It would be so easy to do so, and to cheer him up in the process, but she didn't want to get his hopes up. Her mother was still finding ways to keep the two from getting to Persephone, and if she succeeded, it would most likely cause Nick to self-destruct. So she remained silent, talking about everything but the people they had lost when Nick wasn't sleeping.

A click from the one door in the room brought Eleanor back to the present. Nick sat up abruptly, rubbing his eyes, as the door itself opened. Upon seeing the figure in the doorway, Eleanor felt her eyes narrow on an instinct.

"Mother," she said. For once, Sofia didn't make an attempt to speak kindly to her daughter. She was looking straight at Nick, and Eleanor felt her heart rate increase.

"There's something you should know," she began, her tone causing Nick to shrink back slightly. "You have been a disappointment for these past two years...not serving your purpose, despite how patient I tried to be with you."

"Don't kill him," Eleanor said suddenly. Nick went pale, but Sofia shook her head.

"That wasn't my plan...I'm here with an announcement. Siobhan is alive."

"Wh...what?" Nick replied, eyes wide.

"Yes, I know this will come as a shock. But Siobhan is indeed alive...she has become a Big Daddy, and she and Subject Delta are headed for us as we speak. We can't have that."

From the doorway where Sofia had once been, two Big Sisters appeared. They looked at Eleanor for a moment, before sprinting across the room in unison and tying Nick to one of their Little Sister carriers. Before there could be a single reaction from either of the teens, the Big Sisters had vanished in a blast of purple light, leaving mother and daughter behind. Now Eleanor could comprehend it, and she flew into a rage immediately.

"_Why_?" she screamed. "Why are you doing this to them? This doesn't even make sense anymore!" When Sofia merely turned and exited the room again, Eleanor slumped across the bed once more, the newest round of helpless tears taking over.

"Why...?" she whimpered as the doors closed in on her.


	9. Chapter 9

"It just gets better and better," Siobhan grumbled as she shot a Spider Splicer down from the ceiling. Delta nodded in agreement, shaking a fifth one off of his drill. After arriving in Persephone, the two had found that the amount of Splicers running rampant had increased dramatically, making it harder to move forward and impossible to let their guard down for even a moment. They had even come across the insane, hostile Big Daddies known as Alphas, who proved to be harsh enemies and powerful fighters. Sinclair had started worrying about trying to communicate with the two, though he would point them in the right direction with hurried messages. It wasn't as if Siobhan could blame him- after what Lamb had done to her, Delta, and practically anyone who got on her bad side, she would be terrified to help plot against her as well. Despite all this, they had made significant progress, and they were slowly but surely reaching the quarantine room where Eleanor and Nick were held captive. It was, honestly, terrifying to Siobhan, the prospect of being put up against someone like Sofia Lamb, with the ability to control an entire city and its citizens just to keep people apart. Who knew what they had in store for an actual battle?

_It's lucky I don't have to face it alone_, she thought. _As cheesy as it sounds, I feel like I'm not so hopeless anymore. _

She had gotten so comfortable with fighting Splicers that she could have full-out conversations with her two partners while drilling, gunning down or tossing them, and it had paid off. She had learned things about them- Sinclair's old business with Lamb, Delta's real name and how he had ended up with Eleanor- all of it had come to light, and it made the girl feel stronger. In return, she had told Delta everything- how she had been sent to Rapture at the age of fifteen, and how Nick had been kidnapped and shipped there. How the two had met up back when Rapture wasn't as dangerous, and how they had remained friends and guardians of each other as the city fell to ruin. How that had been abruptly destroyed because of Lamb. The two knew each others' stories, and it made the need for finding the two stronger.

And, of course, there were the Little Sisters. Both of them had made a habit to rescue them, despite Sinclair's constant reminders that it meant less ADAM. They weren't sure what caused the drive to rescue, but it was always there, and it made the Little Sisters both safe and grateful.

"You guys, we've got trouble," Sinclair suddenly announced, his voice more panicked than usual. Siobhan and Delta glanced at each other before Siobhan replied.

_What do you mean? We've had 'trouble' this entire time._

"Can you at least try not to be snarky for once?" Sinclair snapped, an uncharacteristic tone for him. "Lamb knows we're on the way. We knew that from the start. But...she had Nick taken away."

"_What?_" Siobhan shouted aloud. Delta had tensed beside her, knowing what this new information meant for them.

"She sent him away with two Big Sisters...they've dropped him here in Persephone, but it's a big place. I've been trying to locate him, but there's no luck so far...Lamb wouldn't have killed him, but he's well-hidden, at least."

_Fuck...what are we gonna do now? _

"You might want to ask Delta that, instead of relying on me. He'll be the one you need to compromise with."

Siobhan turned to the other Big Daddy, heart racing.

"What are we gonna do?" she repeated, trying to keep herself from pleading. Delta looked slightly panicked, at least as panicked as a Big Daddy could, as he looked back at her. Siobhan could feel a catch in her throat now, and she knew that she was close to crying. Even if the others couldn't see, that would be too degrading for her to handle, so she forced the feeling away.

"Please..." she whimpered despite it, deciding to make what she wanted completely obvious. "We...we have to go back and find him. He's not going to be able to fend for himself for long..."

Delta was silent, which hopefully meant that he was communicating with Sinclair to get his own message across. Luckily, this proved true.

"He has a deal for you," Sinclair announced. "He'll follow you and help you look for Nick for two days, then he's going to go back for Eleanor, whether you go with him or not." He paused, letting Siobhan mull over this. "...I can't help you on this one, kid. Obviously, it's gonna be a tough decision for the two of you. Either way, you're putting someone in danger."

_Two days... _Siobhan echoed. Would that be enough for her? She'd have to look constantly, without a single distraction- Persephone was a big place. If Delta focused on the Splicers they encountered and she focused on the search, they could cover a lot of ground, but would it be enough ground?

_You said you have no idea where they dropped him? _she asked again.

"I don't."

"Then...what are we waiting for? Let's go!" Siobhan commanded, charging back towards where they had just been.


	10. Chapter 10

To Siobhan, fear was a lot like caffeine. The more afraid she was, the stronger her ability to keep moving was, which made her hunt for Nick much easier. Despite the number of Splicers that got in her way, she continued to fight her way forward, barely stopping once that entire night.

Delta, on the other hand, was beginning to regret giving her such little time. Trying to keep up with her and helping her fight whatever showed up was exhausting, and it took all he had not to get Sinclair to stop her for a little while. However, Sinclair was also exhausted, forcing himself to stay awake to help the pair, and decided to speak up.

"Siobhan, have I ever told you how long I've been awake? I've only slept three times since I started helping you."

_That sucks, _Siobhan said absently, still focused on the path ahead. _Who's stopping you from getting some rest? I can find him without you._

"No, no..." Sinclair paused to yawn loudly. "It's best if I keep alert, anyway. Keep moving." Siobhan looked over her shoulder, allowing Delta to catch up, and frowned. The sluggish movements of the other Big Daddy brought what she was doing to her attention. She shook her head and kept walking, though a new thought was in her head.

_I really am selfish. _

Nick was relying on pure luck. He hadn't had a bit of experience with a Tommy gun before, and it was the only thing he could use to defend himself against the group of Splicers in front of him. At his side, a Little Sister was using the boy as a guardian, her previous one killed long before.

"Brother, don't let them get me," she whimpered. Nick nodded, though the panic in his face revealed that he had no idea what to do, and that he was slowly running low on ammo.

"Son of a bitch!" Before Nick could figure out who had hurled the insult, a Splicer had daringly leaped forward, knocking him to the ground. As he struggled to get to his feet, he heard various noises- the scream of his Little Sister, the laughing and shouting of the Splicers, the...loud, rumbling footsteps?

"_Get away from him_!" a voice much like the Little Sister's screamed. Nick looked up and found himself face-to-face with a pair of Big Daddies, who were now fighting off the Splicers that had just been menacing him. As his opponents were now preoccupied, Nick took the opportunity to scoop up his Little Sister and hold her tightly until the danger had passed.

With the Splicers dead, Nick's two saviors turned to him, causing his fear to return. What kind were they? Would they attack him if he tried to move?

"It's okay, Brother. They're nice Daddies," the Little Sister said, smiling cheerily up as if the memory of the fight was gone already. This wasn't enough to convince her 'brother,' though, as he remained wary. However, the first Big Daddy stepped forward, retracting its drill and replacing it with a hand.

"Nick."

Nick nearly jumped into the air as an unexpected voice echoed from within its helmet. _And _it was female- what kind of Big Daddy spoke comprehensible sentences, and was female?

He froze almost immediately after thinking that dense question. The answer should have been obvious the moment the Big Daddy spoke.

"...Siobhan?" he whispered, his eyes widening even further and filling with tears. The Big Daddy stepped forward again.

"Yeah, it's me...God, Nick, I thought she was gonna kill you," she choked. Nick flung himself forward onto his friend's suit, sobbing loudly.

"Sh-she _did _kill you...and you're back...Siobhan, I missed you so much," he whimpered. A pair of hands wrapped around him- too big and bulky to be Siobhan's actual hands, but...

He pulled away suddenly, realizing what exactly he was hugging. "Damn, Siobhan...what did they do to you? You're...are you completely grafted?"

"I don't think so...I can take my helmet off to eat and drink," Siobhan replied, though she didn't do so to prove it. "This is weird for you, I bet. But...it's all they could do to stop me from completely dying. It's better than the alternative, wouldn't you say?"

Before Nick could reply, he heard a shifting as the other Big Daddy scooped up his Little Sister and placed a hand over her eyes, rescuing her swiftly and completely. The girl, now normal once more, looked surprised at the change in her surroundings, but Nick's attention soon turned back to his old friend.

"Yes," he agreed. "Better than the alternative." Siobhan nodded, and for a moment, Nick could imagine the gentle facial expression that she was probably wearing under her helmet. He decided to ignore the thoughts of how spliced her face could be- mutilated to the point where she might not even be recognizable- and instead gestured at the Big Daddy holding the girl. "Is that-"

"Subject Delta," Siobhan finished. "Eleanor's 'father,' and my partner in this whole deal. Well, him and Sinclair, but you probably can't hear him."

"That's right," Sinclair chimed in from inside Siobhan's head. "Only if I decide to make a public broadcast, then all of Rapture could hear me." He paused, and when he spoke again, his voice sounded a little bit off. "Can you three move on now? The kid needs a vent, and Eleanor needs rescuing, right?" Siobhan blinked, but nodded.

"Yeah," she said aloud. "Guys, we need to take her to a vent, don't we?"

Luckily, it didn't take long for the new group to find a vent. The Little Sister seemed pleased by this, and thanked Delta once more for rescuing her before disappearing inside. Nick frowned, confused.

"What's with that whole rescuing thing? I don't understand how you do it," he mumbled, embarrassed. Inwardly, Siobhan rolled her eyes affectionately, but before she could answer, another transmission came through for both Big Daddies.

"_You two_!" Sinclair shouted so suddenly that the two jumped in response. Nick stepped back, even more confused. "Listen to me, okay? You need to get back to Eleanor as soon as you can!" The transmission was suddenly filling with static, with Sinclair's voice merely peppering it. "Lamb...quarantine...you need...it's-"

The transmission cut off abruptly, filling both heads with an eerie silence.

"Sinclair? Sinclair? Hey!" Siobhan said aloud, looking between Nick and Delta with panic.

"What happened?" Nick asked, startled. Siobhan's heart was racing wildly again, with a mixture of fear and rage.

_If he's in trouble...I'll bet Lamb's behind it. We get a step closer to getting where we need to be, and she goes and ruins it for us every fucking time!_

"We...we need to get back to Eleanor, _now_!"


	11. Chapter 11

Nick hadn't realized how hard it was to keep up with Big Daddies once they were on the move. He found himself half-running the entire time, following Delta and Siobhan up flights of stairs, down damp hallways, and through hordes of Splicers. He still wasn't quite sure what was going on, but Siobhan's comments and the entire worried vibe he was receiving told him that there was serious trouble on their end. Something involving the Sinclair person Siobhan had called out to. As he hurried behind, making sure he could always see the glowing tubes of ADAM and EVE on Delta's back, he couldn't help but allow a second thought to cross his mind.

_Eleanor..._

Lamb had said she wouldn't kill either of them, but at this point, Nick had a rightful reason not to trust a word the woman said. How far would she go to make sure Delta couldn't have her back? Was it worth mentioning, when everything was already going downhill?

"We don't have time for this shit!" Siobhan shouted, interrupting Nick's thoughts. Another pair of Spider Splicers had leaped down to fight the group, and in the next moment, they were splattered across the opposite wall. Here the Big Daddies paused, letting Nick catch up, before Siobhan spoke again.

"Do you guys have any idea where we're going?" she asked weakly. Nick could hear a definite tremble in her voice, as if she was on the verge of tears. "What are we looking for? We don't know what happened to Sinclair, but...I don't want to just forget about him. All he's ever done is help us...where would he be?" Nick looked at his feet, finally understanding. Siobhan had always gotten too attached to people who were kind to her- he was willing to bet that Sinclair, whoever he was, had been helping her get to him from the beginning.

Delta suddenly reached forward, patting Siobhan reluctantly on the back. It was a strange gesture, but when Siobhan looked up, he nodded at her and pointed forward.

"Yeah," she mumbled, trying to clear her head. "Let's keep going." As the group went forward once more, Nick couldn't help but feel a little grateful. Delta and Augustus Sinclair- two people who were just names to him before- had been helping Siobhan before he even knew that she was alive.

_If I ever get to meet him...I'll have to thank him. _

There was silence for a little longer as they continued forward, still unsure of where they were going and who they were looking for, until they reached a corridor.

"I know this place," Nick whispered. "It's where they took me until they knew where to put me." Siobhan turned abruptly.

"So...we're close to Eleanor?" she asked hopefully.

"Relatively close," Nick corrected as the three moved on. However, they found themselves at one of the rare doors that wouldn't immediately open.

"Dammit," Siobhan groaned. "If this is a dead end, I swear I-"

Before she could finish her threat, the door behind them slammed closed as well, automatically erasing any light.

For a moment, the three stood in the pitch-black darkness, fear automatically taking over. In a moment, though, the two visors lit up, illuminating the room with a dim glow. Siobhan pulled Nick closer, ready to protect him from whatever surprise encounter they got this time. However, to their surprise, not a single Splicer came out to greet them. Besides the television screens that were lowering into the room, they were completely alone. The message on them, telling the group to stand by, were strangely eerie as they shuddered to a stop in front of them. After a moment, a face appeared on all five screens, staring at the camera with unforgiving eyes.

"I suppose I underestimated the way you would handle the situation," Sofia Lamb said coldly. "You managed to find Nick before he could be killed, and yet you're still on the way here as if it wasn't even a hindrance. In a way, I'm impressed." Under normal circumstances, Siobhan would have noted that she sounded completely unimpressed with a sarcastic thought, but at the moment, she couldn't even force herself to think anything besides what she had in store for them _this _time. "But I still have faith. My daughter _can _be redeemed, and when she is, she will never have to bear something like this again. The only way to do this is to start over, of course."

The door in front of them finally opened, revealing a sheet of glass that kept the group blocked off. On the other end, an Alpha stood, its movements slow and pained. Siobhan felt her heart catch in her throat.

"That isn't..." she began, terrified to even finish the sentence. The Alpha stumbled against the glass, unable to look at the others. "You've got to be shitting me."

_It has to be. If it was a normal Alpha...it would have shattered the glass and attacked us by now._

"Delta, Siobhan, don't look away. See the damage that your journey has brought to Augustus Sinclair," Sofia said, confirming the thought. "He is the one with the ability to get you to your goal. What will you do?"

Siobhan looked helplessly at Delta, who was still staring forward at Sinclair, shocked. Sinclair shook his head, before turning away and taking off down the adjacent stairs. The glass door slid away, but none of them dared move forward. The screens were also rising back, though the voice remained.

"You will see what you've done to Rapture." Sofia's voice suddenly dropped to a whisper. "And before you do, I will remove this curse from my daughter."


	12. Chapter 12

In the distance, the three could hear the heavy footsteps of Sinclair stumbling away. Though no one would see her either way, Siobhan still felt the urge to fight back her tears, and instead turned from the now-open doorway.

"She won't stop at anything, will she?" she choked. "What are we gonna do?" Nick stepped forward into the light, looking at the staircase that the new Alpha had vanished down.

"What does she mean...?" he asked quietly. "He's the one with the ability to get us to our goal?" Before Siobhan could guess for herself, she heard the ever-familiar sound of a radio transmission beginning.

"Thank...thank God I can still d-do this..."

Sinclair sounded like it hurt him to even speak, causing even more of a panic in Siobhan.

_What did she do to you? _She couldn't help but wonder if the tearful tone in her voice was reaching the man on the opposite end.

"Isn't...it obvious? She grafted me in...into this damn suit, and she's controlling my body...Siobhan, Delta...she stuck me with the key to the lifeboat. She's...she's gonna blow up the place and escape with Eleanor...you've gotta get the key..." He paused, and they heard him gasping for air for a moment. "Goddamn, it's a struggle just to _talk_...I can't hand over the key, even if I wanna..."

Delta's hands clenched into fists as the realization hit. Sinclair had accepted the only other solution, even if the two of them couldn't. At his side, a sob escaped Siobhan's throat, and he assumed she had realized the same.

_You can't mean that, Sinclair, _she thought. Sinclair sighed.

"Of course I do...I would've loved to escape this too, but...I'm done for, you two. If my only choices...if I'm stuck in this suit, under _her _control...I'd rather die."

_But-_

"I'm...sorry I'm making you do this...really, I am. Catch up to me...and then kill me." Before either of them could protest, the transmission ended. Delta and Siobhan stepped out into the lit room, looking down the staircase.

"I can't do it," Siobhan said blankly. "There's got to be some way we can avoid killing him. He...I..." Finally at a loss for words, the girl let out a frustrated sigh, before starting down the stairs. "I guess we have to find him, at least. We can't figure out anything until we do." Nodding slowly, Delta followed close behind, with Nick, confused as ever, bringing up the rear.

The first glimpse they got of Sinclair was through a door guarded by Splicers. As they swarmed around the group, Sinclair felt Lamb controlling his legs, sending him up yet another flight of stairs and away from his pursuers. Siobhan and Delta immediately got to work, eliminating the Splicers without a second thought. Their minds were both on Sinclair, and their apparent mission.

Delta would never admit it, but he hated to do this even more than Siobhan would. He had always been a little wary of Sinclair, ever since their suspicious first meeting, but he had never steered them wrong, and if he hadn't been there, who was to say he would even be in Persephone by now? And now, to kill him, after all he had done...he felt disgusting, and he knew it would be the betrayal of his lifetime.

As they eyed the dead bodies around them and proceeded up the stairs after them, he noticed that Siobhan was slowly weakening. He hadn't guessed that she would actually be severely suffering from it, and it worried him. But the only way to reverse it would be to go through with what Lamb wanted, to kill Sinclair, and whether he wanted to or not, the time was quickly approaching.

After a while longer, they reached a second glass door, this one obviously made to be broken. Sinclair was inside the room the door protected, obviously, and all that could happen now was the inevitable.

_I can't..._ Siobhan thought, though she guessed that Sinclair's voice was no longer occupying her head. That it never would again.

She stepped forward, tears already welling up behind her helmet, revved her drill, and smashed the door in front of her.

Sinclair leaned against the opposite wall, watching the three enter the room with tired eyes. Lamb had him running, jumping and climbing away more than he ever had in his life, and in such a big suit. Between that and the constant struggle to maintain his own thoughts, he was exhausted already.

Siobhan was the first to step forward, facing him but staying farther away. Her fists were clenched tightly at her sides, and Sinclair could almost imagine the mournful look on the girl's face.

"Sinclair," she said softly, confirming the thought. Sinclair could feel his hands pushing himself off the wall and his feet moving towards the group, though he felt oddly detached at this point.

"Listen, kid..." he whispered. "I'm barely holding on as it is. She's-she's gonna make me attack-" As if on cue, his drill appeared, immediately buzzing to life and thrusting forward. Delta responded quickly, shoving Siobhan to the side before the drill could impale her through the throat. Delta continued to lift Nick off of the ground altogether and place him on a nearby table, keeping him away from the fight, and block Sinclair's attack with his own drill. Siobhan stood, finally powering her drill to life.

"I'm so sorry!" she shouted over the sounds of the the three weapons.

"Me too, kid!" Sinclair replied desperately as his body jerked forward, still trying to fight Lamb's command while fighting under it. "But there's nothing you can do anymore!" He paused to cry out in pain as Delta produced a shotgun from his arm and fired the first shot.

"Stop it!" Siobhan shouted, looking between the two. Delta roared in protest, exasperated at Siobhan's final attempt to avoid the fight. Sinclair suddenly became aware that if he didn't stop fighting Lamb's commands, he'd die on his own accord, even without the two Big Daddies. He hated to do it, but he had to give up, though he would never give in completely.

"_Kill me_!" he yelled. Finally, the two obliged, though Siobhan's sobs were audible. Things were quickly becoming a mess, until it was almost impossible to distinguish each person.

At last, with a groan, Augustus Sinclair fell backwards, hitting the ground with a heavy thump. Delta lowered his whirring drill, the remorse already kicking in. Nick looked on from the table he had been cowering on, watching fearfully. However, a closer look revealed that the Alpha was still breathing, if just barely. That was enough for Siobhan to break down, falling to her knees at the side of her dying friend.

"_Sinclair_!"


	13. Chapter 13

"C...come on, kid...you don't need to cry over someone like me," Sinclair rasped. Siobhan knelt by his side, her back heaving with sobs and her hands clenched on Sinclair's arm. Delta was now resting his head in his hands, feeling the same pain as the younger Big Daddy, and even Nick was heartbroken. This was the man he had been thinking about, the one he needed to thank most, and he was dying as he thought about it.

"You...you weren't supposed to have this happen," Siobhan whispered. "You were gonna escape with us..."

"I know...I know, kid...can't be helped anymore...p-please, take the key and get outta here...who knows what else she'll do...to you three." He gasped again, finally reaching the limit of his power. "S-so long, kid..." He sighed now, taking a final breath. Siobhan sat there for a moment longer, letting the impact of his death wash over her, before she noticed something else. Where the screws were on her own helmet, it was only smooth on his. She closed her eyes, slipped the key out of Sinclair's hand, and stood shakily.

"He was grafted," she said bitterly. "That bitch put him through as much pain as she could before he died." She looked down from the key in her hand to Sinclair's body once more. "Let's go." She shuffled around the two, heading through the door without a glance back. In the following silence, both males could hear her sobs echo in the adjacent room, as well as her footsteps slowly taking her away, before they decided it would be best to follow.

Eleanor turned away from the screen that her mother had placed in her room, wiping away her own tears. Time after time, she had been trapped with that goddamn television, watching the lives of her mother's victims pan out. It went past the deaths of her father and Siobhan- she had witnessed brutal Alphas under her mind control, Splicers turned against each other by her bias and promises of ADAM, the few sane people killed by the people they once knew. She hadn't known what the two Big Daddies thought of Sinclair, making Siobhan's tears surprising, but at the same time, she had felt pain just watching them. Augustus Sinclair...he was a con man, and that had made life in Rapture easier for him, but at the same time, he had hoped to escape for years. And when the four of them needed an escape, it was the perfect excuse. He could have helped them, lured them to him, and then had them guard him as they all escaped. That was the plan. And yet, he waited. With every opportunity he had to take the lifeboat himself, he waited for them to get closer, so they had their own chance. Who _was _Augustus Sinclair, in the end? Had he ever once thought that it would cost him his life?

In the time that Eleanor had spent thinking this through, Sofia herself had entered the room. When her daughter became aware of her presence, she spoke for the first time in weeks.

"He didn't have to die." Sofia sighed dramatically, as if scolding a much younger girl.

"I was not the one who killed him, Eleanor. I know you were watching that screen. Did it mean anything to them, do you think? Was Sinclair just another body for the people trying to take you from me?" Fury slowly built up in Eleanor once again, and her voice betrayed her.

"Don't you_ dare _say they wanted to kill him! You didn't give any of them the choice, from the very beginning!" Before she could continue, she felt something sharp against the skin of her arm. As her vision suddenly blurred, she saw her mother place a needle on the chair beside her. "Did...did you just _drug _me...?" she whispered, sinking back down onto the bed. Above her, her mother was leaning down, filling her vision with the pillow she was now holding.

"I told them I would remove the curse from you," she said, and Eleanor could have sworn she heard a hint of desperation in her voice. "I'll be waiting, Eleanor."

Nick couldn't tell whether or not Siobhan was still crying. The sobs and whimpers had stopped, but she hadn't spoken to either of them since they had left Sinclair's body behind. It astounded him how she could still feel so strongly about death, even the death of somebody close, as a Big Daddy. They killed, no matter what the purpose was. He could assume that Siobhan had killed countless Splicers on the way to find him, and yet she still had the sensitivity that most Daddies lost after a while. How was it even possible?

Delta's gloved hand suddenly clamped down on Nick's shoulder. As the younger boy looked up, he noticed that he was shaking violently, with sharp noises barely audible from his helmet.

"...You okay?" he asked, at a loss for words. Siobhan turned around, confused, and witnessed Delta groan loudly before collapsing to the floor. Nick took a step back, eyes wide, and Siobhan slowly drew closer.

"D-Delta?" she asked, crouching by the Big Daddy's side. "Hey...hey, Delta..." Her heartbeat was slowly increasing as she shook him gently, trying to get some sort of response. His chest was still heaving with forced breaths, but besides that, there wasn't any indication that he _could _respond.

_Why? s_he thought, looking back up at Nick. The boy had knelt as well, looking over Delta and concentrating. _What's happening now?_

Whatever it was, she had a feeling that his collapse wasn't caused by the same trauma that she had gotten from killing Sinclair.


	14. Chapter 14

Nick was the first to respond from the stupor that followed. He turned Delta onto his back, shaking him once more in the process, and observed him for a moment. His breathing was normal, and the visor was no help- it only lit up when Delta wanted it to, anyway. He searched his mind desperately, trying to find some distant memory that could provide reasoning for what was happening to the Big Daddy.

Luckily, it didn't take too long.

"Siobhan," he said, standing abruptly. "We need to get back to the quarantine room _now. _Can you carry him?" Siobhan looked up sharply.

"Are you crazy? Why would I be able to? I'm not _that _much stronger!" she argued.

"Listen for a second, okay?" Nick's tone was unusually confident, convincing his friend to silence herself. "I have a feeling that whatever's happening to Delta...it's got to do with Eleanor. She's in trouble back there."

It had been one of the earliest conversations he had taken part in with the girl. Back when the secrets were still plentiful and things were still awkward, the only topics of conversation were the two that had been lost. It had been then that Eleanor revealed her plan to Nick, keeping her voice as quiet as possible to avoid her mother's wrath if she found out.

"I still have the bonds with the Little Sisters," she had explained. "I feel everything that happens to them, and I can communicate with them without Mother catching on. Right now, they're out there, looking for Father with their own Big Daddies making sure that they don't run into any problems along the way."

"You mean, he'll be okay?" Nick had responded, confused. Eleanor glanced warily behind her as Sofia passed, pausing to look into their room before vanishing again.

"I can't say _okay_, exactly, but he will be revived. Once they find his body, they'll take it back to a group of people who I've also been communicating with. They'll fix his wounds, and give him the ability to be 'reborn,' and then they'll send him to a Vita-Chamber to finish the job. I know Father didn't want to die, which means the Vita-Chamber will be able to do its job. But..." She paused yet again, her eyes straying down to her hands. "Besides being unbelievably selfish of me, doing this is one of the biggest risks I can possibly take. A Big Daddy and Little Sister are bonded together through a type of mental conditioning, which means if the girl is killed, the man will either go completely insane or fall into a coma. The bond between Father and I is still unbroken, despite his death, which means...if Mother wants to completely destroy the bond, she would put my life at risk to do so."

"Th-then why are you..." Nick had trailed off, unsure how to word the question. He couldn't blame her for doing so, yet he couldn't picture himself doing the same. Eleanor had looked up at that point, her eyes revealing the determination she was keeping dormant.

"Because none of this was his fault," she said softly. "Nobody here seems to wonder about the surface world anymore, but I do, and he does...and I want to give him the chance to escape this place with me. This is the only way it can happen. But...if something were to happen to me, and the bond broke...his body would start to shut down. That's how they programmed Big Daddies during the bond- if they weren't taking care of a Little Sister, they were useless. I'm not a Sister anymore, but the bond is still there...so I need to protect myself as much as I can for the time being."

Swallowing back the lump in his throat, Nick looked back down at Delta, silently praying that he'd wake up soon. There was no way they could keep moving without him, when something so drastic had happened.

"What do you mean?" Siobhan asked. Nick looked up again, biting his lip.

"Do you know what happens when a Little Sister's heart stops beating?" Siobhan gasped, but before she could respond, there was a groan from their feet. Delta had finally regained consciousness, and was staggering to his feet. The younger boy's eyes closed, helpless as to how he would explain this one. However, Delta hadn't caught on yet, as he only seemed a bit confused.

"D-Delta," Nick said at last, his voice shaking. "We need to get going now. The thing is..." he paused, taking a breath before plunging forward with the bombshell. "I think Lamb tried to break the bond. Eleanor could be seriously hurt right now."

The change in tone was instant. Delta roared so loudly that Nick flung himself backwards out of sheer terror and Siobhan herself moved back. The fury was evident in every fiber of his being, and he turned sharply, raging visibly as he took off.

"W-wait! Delta!" Siobhan called out. The only response was the quickly fading footfalls as the Big Daddy vanished further into Persephone. Scooping Nick up, Siobhan took off after him, knowing what this meant. It wouldn't be long before they got there, because now it was about revenge.

That wasn't true, though. It had always been about revenge, in the end. This was just what brought it to the surface.


	15. Chapter 15

Lamb felt the beginnings of a smile tug at her lips. Watching the three rush towards her daughter infuriated her as much as ever, but for once, she felt a hint of hope. The Splicers she had previously sent for them would soon seem like nothing, compared to what would happen next.

In an adjacent room separated by panels of glass, a cluster of Houdini Splicers sat idly. Hypnosis, added to a generous injection of ADAM, left them placid and quiet for once, but it wouldn't last long.

Delta was on his way, after all.

Lamb stood now, attracting the attention of the ones in the other room.

"Where ya going, boss?" one asked. The woman merely turned away, walking off as if what she had planned next wasn't important in the slightest.

"D-Delta, I know you're upset and all, but t-try to save y-your energy!" Siobhan panted as she struggled to keep up. Delta had refused to stop running for what had felt like an hour, as if his human side had vanished the moment fury kicked in. Siobhan, on the other hand, was still very much in tune with her body, and just trying to have the Big Daddy in her sights was exhausting. Having Nick on her shoulder couldn't help either, but if she having trouble keeping up, the smaller boy would be done for.

Delta seemed to not have noticed Siobhan's weak pleas, as he only managed to speed up again. It would only be a matter of time before he confronted Sofia Lamb after so many years and forms of torture.

Everything would come down to that moment.

A voice over a hidden intercom broke the trance-like state of anger he was in, though the owner of the voice simply made it worse. As Lamb began to speak, he stopped abruptly, gasping for air and allowing the others to catch up.

"I _must _congratulate you, Subject Delta," the woman said offhandedly. "So much effort to get yourself here, and you even got those two as your _helpers._" Her tone suddenly became bitter, causing a shiver to run down Delta's spine despite himself. "I cannot handle this a moment longer. You're supposed to be dead, understand? You and that girl. And now I will ensure it. It will be painless, I assure you, so don't worry." With that sarcastic form of comfort, silence fell over the room once more, opening room for panic.

"What's she doing _now_?" Nick asked, his voice high pitched with fear as he clung to his friend's back. Siobhan had already pulled out a rivet gun and was maniacally preparing trap rivets around the room. Delta barely seemed to notice as they got ready for whatever battle was ahead, as Sofia's words were still echoing in his skull. _You're supposed to be dead. _

But he wasn't, was he? He had come back, and it was almost as if Sofia didn't believe it at all. Could she have gone insane as well over the last ten years, insane enough to have delusions of power that gave her the reign over Rapture?

A familiar cackle sounded as the air seemed to warp before their very eyes. Without warning, the trap rivets were disarmed by a round of bullets, before the Houdini Splicers owning the guns materialized and opened fire on the group in the room.

Siobhan's startled scream was the last Sofia heard before she turned off the screens. It would only be a matter of time before the three were dead, and she had to move on to the next step in her plan. She paused at the room where the Splicers had just recently been, frowning slightly at the silence it now contained. However, she quickly moved on, ready to announce her latest deed to her daughter.

Opening the door to the quarantine room, she found herself alone. The bed was empty, and Eleanor herself was nowhere to be found. Though she would never reveal it, a slight sense of dead came over her as she surveyed the room, before she called out.

"...Eleanor?"

A light, metallic clicking was the only answer to her question. Feeling a slight chill behind her, Sofia turned to find a sharp needle aimed directly at her chest. Her heart rate increasing for the first time in years, she looked up to find that the Big Sister holding the needle had her face revealed, her helmet tucked under her other arm.

"Mother, I won't stay here anymore," Eleanor said, feigning sweetness. "I'm off to find Father, if you don't mind."

_Author's Note: I really apologize for how late and short this chapter was. I'm really busy these days, so it's a shock that I even have time to work on this! (sweatdrop) But thank you for your patience. See you next chapter!_


	16. Chapter 16

_Author's Note: Ah, finally. I tried to do NaNoWriMo this year, which meant putting aside my actual fiction/fanfiction for the time being. I failed horribly at it, though, so here I am again. This should be finished pretty soon, since I've already finished the last two chapters, but we'll see how long it takes for me to do the rest. But here's chapter 16~ Sorry it took so long._

"Oh, goddammit!" Nick shouted, reaching for his Tommy gun a second too late. One strangely fast Splicer had leaped forward a mere few seconds after materializing, and had proceeded to grab the boy by the neck, smiling grotesquely.

"I remember you, you little shrimp. The boss had to punish ya, didn't she?" he hissed. "Well, we're not finished with you yet-"

Delta instinctively fired a round of bullets into the Splicer's head, bowling it over. Nick gasped for air, trying to reach for his weapon yet again. Regaining his control, he opened fire on the new enemies before him.

Meanwhile, Siobhan became distracted by a commotion at the opposite door. In a moment, a group of Spider Splicers found their way in the room, smirking as they held up their characteristic hooks. Siobhan swore, running at them with her drill spinning wildly. She could barely feel the impact of the fight, her mind numbed by thoughts.

_This is what she wanted all along, wasn't it? For us to get close enough to rescue her, and then to have us just-_

"Siobhan!" Nick yelled from her side. Turning, she found that Delta had collapsed once more, leaving the Splicers to swarm his body. Nick had started shooting again, though it seemed to have become a bit less helpful. Siobhan's throat tightened as she extracted a shotgun from her arm, joining her friend in the battle.

Now...all I have to do is listen closely.

Running through the halls of Rapture proved easier than she thought it would. Eleanor supposed that the Splicers in the vicinity had been summoned to the same cause she was looking for, leaving the trip there a lot simpler. If she wasn't fearing the fate of her father and friends, she would have been able to walk, almost.

_But...where are they?_

The entire building seemed to be completely silent, leaving her destination almost impossible to find. The longer she ran, the more desperate she became. She slowed down at last, her emotions catching up with her. What if she wasn't even in the right place? What if she couldn't find them in time, and by the time she came to the 'rescue,' they were already dead? Her mother would never be lenient with them, not anymore, and at this point...

_I wouldn't be able to handle it, _Eleanor thought, fighting back tears. _All this, just to lose him in the end...I couldn't-_

"This way!" a Splicer shouted from behind her. Eleanor whirled around, needle at the ready, but the Splicer hadn't even noticed her arrival. He was running down an adjacent hall, leading a group of Leadheads. It didn't take a genius to figure out where they were going.

Eleanor waited behind the wall a moment, making sure that she wouldn't draw attention, then inhaled sharply. It was time to save her father.

She stepped out, bracing herself, and took off after the group.

The good news was that the crowd of Splicers was finally starting to become smaller. The bad news was that if they hadn't been eliminated already, they were putting up one hell of a fight.

Siobhan had finally managed to eliminate the rest of the Spiders, grabbing the last one by the shoulders and throwing it into the metal door. Meanwhile, Nick had managed to get rid of the Houdinis with all the gunfire he could muster, rendering the room a bit quieter.

One final Splicer had survived the battle, and was now running at Siobhan's back, a crowbar at the ready. The girl turned to find him in mid-air, ready to strike.

And then he was gone.

Siobhan stood rooted to the spot for a moment, shell-shocked. His weapon had proved that he couldn't have been a Houdini...

A horrifying scream sounded from her right, and she turned to find the source. The Splicer in question was thrashing on the oversized needle of a Big Sister, who looked up at him without a word. After a moment, the life drained from him completely, and the Sister tossed his body aside lightly. The portal on her helmet glowed dangerously as it moved, looking over Siobhan and Nick before stopping at Delta, who remained unresponsive on the ground. Siobhan raised her drill warily as the Big Sister walked towards him, prepared to strike if it became necessary. However, all the newcomer did was crouch at his side, turning his head so that she could look at his own portal.

"...He's still alive," she said in a hauntingly familiar voice, reaching for her helmet. As it slid away, revealing a head of short, dark hair, Siobhan's heart skipped a beat.

"...Eleanor?" Nick piped up tentatively.


	17. Chapter 17

The Big Sister straightened up, revealing her face at last.

"You two have done a good job of taking care of Father," she said with a weak smile. "What happened to him wasn't anyone's fault but Mother's...and maybe my own. Thank you." Siobhan found herself at a loss for words, finally facing the girl who they had been trying so hard to find. Nick stepped forward, his eyes huge.

"How...how did you get out of there, Eleanor?" he asked carefully. Eleanor sighed, closing her eyes as if the answer pained her.

"When you were kidnapped, I had to think quickly," she explained. "I had no idea where you were going, or what you were going to face, so I had to employ my Sisters to do the work for me. With the ability to see through their eyes, I sent one out in search of you, and when she found you, I was able to figure out where you were. But it wouldn't have meant anything if I was still trapped inside." She turned to Siobhan now, a smile tugging at her lips. "You and my father have rescued so many of the Sisters in your time, and it's one of the best choices you could have made. But there are still many out there, and those are the ones I had to use. I sent them out to retrieve the pieces of this suit and bring them back to me. They have been rescued now, and I sent them to Miss Tenenbaum. After all, I learn from my father." Eleanor looked back down at the suit on the floor with gloomy affection. "I suppose it's best that you both know what's happening now. It's only right, but it will hurt." She paused, sighing yet again. "Little Sisters are connected to their Big Daddies through a psychological bond. If that bond is broken by the death of the Sister...well, it will be followed shortly by the death of the other half. My mother realized that she could stop my heart without killing me, and did so the moment she could." Nick gasped, and Siobhan's eyes widened.

"She..."

"Suffocated me," Eleanor finished. "With a pillow, just long enough for me to stop breathing for a moment. But it was long enough, I'm afraid..." She bit her lip. "It's too late for the bond to be rebuilt, but the least I can do is get him to the surface before he..." She trailed off now, the grief obvious in her eyes.

"He's still alive," Nick offered, one attempt at comforting her. Eleanor nodded in agreement, turning back to Delta.

"I was lucky enough for that," she replied. "I have a little bit of time left, but not much. Here's what we're going to do, you two." Now she looked determined. "I already have things set up. We need to get to the docking station where Augustus Sinclair kept his lifeboat. From there, I'm going to have my Sisters begin boiling the water beneath it, which will give it enough of a push to start it. From there, we should be able to control it until it gets close enough that it will just float to the surface. We don't have much time, though. Once Father wakes up, we have to move quickly. I have no idea what my mother is planning next, and I'm not sure I want to know-"

Her explanation was cut off by a groan from the floor. At last, Delta had regained consciousness, and was now forcing himself to stand. When he turned to the group, he froze again. Eleanor stepped forward, closer to him, and when she spoke, her voice shook.

"Father?" she whispered. "It's...it's me, Eleanor." Delta reached out with a trembling hand, touching Eleanor's shoulder as if he didn't believe she was actually there. His drill retracted into his arm, replaced by his regular hand for once, which allowed Eleanor to hug him at last. "Father...I'm so sorry," she said tearfully. "We need to leave here, now. It's a while to the docking station. It's the only way I can save you now." Pulling back, Delta nodded, his drill returning once more. Eleanor secured her helmet over her head again, and turned to the open door before them.

"It's time to go," she announced, before the four broke into a speedy run once again.

"This is Sinclair's lifeboat," Eleanor explained, pointing upwards. "Like I mentioned before, with the amount of people on it, it might be a little hard to kick-start it, but my Sisters are on the way. They'll have this working in no time, okay? Just hold on."

The suspense was killing everyone in the room. All eyes were on the window, waiting for movement in the water. After a moment, Nick spoke, obviously impatient.

"Um...they do know they're meant to be here, right?" he asked tentatively. Eleanor nodded.

"Why wouldn't they?" she replied almost desperately. "Where _are _they?"

"Unfortunately," a voice said from over the intercom, "I could not stop them. They will be there, but it doesn't count for much anymore."

"M-Mother?" Eleanor murmured nervously. "You..."

"Yes, I made it out of your locked room. Thank you for inquiring," Lamb replied bitterly. "Delta, do you understand what lies before you? _My _daughter, who you turned against me. Does this bring you the happiness you needed so much?" Before anyone in the docking station could speak up, she went on. "You knew what I had planned, and yet you ran away from your sure chance at safety? What has Subject Delta done to you that caused this? Has he brainwashed you, Eleanor? Knowing I will destroy the entire city, and anyone inside, why would you leave me?"

"She's going to destroy Rapture?" Siobhan echoed.

"Mother, don't do this!" Eleanor shouted, not even sure if she was being heard. "This is crazy, and you-"

"I'll be waiting for you, Eleanor," Sofia whispered. "Don't think I've given up on you just yet." And once more, the transmission cut short, leaving a now-familiar silence.

But only for a little while.


	18. Chapter 18

It was almost a chain reaction. As the transmission ended, the doors flew open, the railings of the balconies fell apart, allowing the Splicers easy access to the group on the platform. Eleanor responded immediately, summoning a group of fireballs around her hand and sending them at the Alpha Series that had led the charge. The two Big Daddies took a place at either side of her, each attacking the Splicers that continued to arrive. Soon, the docking station was swarmed with so many that Siobhan was amazed they all fit. Firing a wave of electricity at a group of Houdini Splicers that had just arrived, she pulled out her drill, only to be distracted by three Brutes that had arrived in the doorway to her left. Meanwhile, Eleanor seemed to be fighting effortlessly- and considering the amount of Plasmids injected into a Big Sister, it wouldn't have surprised them if she _was _fighting effortlessly. Nick, obviously the least armed of the group, tried to keep to the back, protecting himself from any surprise enemies while doing what he could to decrease the number in the room. It was all he could do at that point.

All that was on Delta's mind was not blacking out again. Doing so would be a death sentence- there were too many Splicers for the others to be able to protect him while saving themselves. He would stay awake for the entire time, even if it killed him. He had to save his daughter, and the two children who had helped reunite them. They had gone to hell and back with him, and he owed it to them to be the man he thought he was. His head pounded, and his heart beat strangely, but he continued to fling himself forward, machine gun ablaze.

A soft glow from the window caught Eleanor's attention. At last, the Little Sisters had arrived, and were now wading around under the lifeboat. She needed to set her plan into motion now. As Siobhan darted past her and took over the newest tide of Splicers, she found the opportunity to turn to the boy behind her.

"Nick!" she shouted over the commotion. "Get back against the wall and save your ammo! I'll tell you what to do when it's time!" Confused, Nick nodded and obliged, moving so that he was against the glass. Behind him, the Sisters were working obediently, heating up the water as they moved around in it. There weren't enough of them to make the process happen quickly, but it was better than nothing.

"Eleanor? What are you doing?" Siobhan yelled as she finished her own job and saw what was happening. Eleanor turned back, noticing the clamor above them as what she assumed were more Splicers arrived in the room. _This is a full-out assault, _she thought as she prepared her needle.

"I've got a plan, and he's the one who needs to go through with it," she explained as the fight began once more. "Nick, listen up! I'm going to need you to get to the second floor when I tell you. When you get there, you'll see an oxygen mask on the control panel. Put that on before you do anything else." She paused, grabbing a Splicer out of mid-air on her needle before tossing it aside. "You'll see two big pipes on the ceiling, filled with water. You're going to use your gun and break them both so the station will be flooded. From there, we'll get to the elevator, okay?"

It was a risky business. There had yet to be a break in enemies that lasted more than thirty seconds, and if he went up there alone, who was to say that he wouldn't be attacked? But he couldn't worry about that. If he did, he was certain to be killed up there, he just knew.

"Got it!" he replied, keeping his gun loaded and at the ready. It occurred to him that these were his final moments in Rapture. Surrounded by fighting, ready to help destroy at the signal.

He had never felt more alive, somehow.

The water was beginning to bubble, and the number of enemies in the room was tolerable. It was time.

"Nick, get up there!" Eleanor commanded. Nick took off across the room, seeing nothing but the stairwell in front of him. No enemies, no friends, nothing to fear or worry about. Just those metal stairs. He raced up them, gun still at the ready, and looked around frantically for what he had to do. The control panel was in the center of the walkway, and the promised oxygen mask was strapped to a lever. He grabbed it, secured it to his face, and then looked up. Sure enough, everything Eleanor had said was true; a few feet below the ceiling, two water-filled pipes stood waiting for him. Below him, the room was empty- Eleanor, Siobhan and Delta had finished their own task, and as the water began to steam, the Little Sisters vanished, off to find their own safety within the lifeboat. It all came down to him. He took aim and fired, sending round after round into the strong metal pipes. It took longer than he expected or wanted, but just a few minutes later, they began to show deep, dangerous cracks.

"Get ready, you three!" Eleanor shouted over the loud cracking above them. Delta and Siobhan planted their feet into the ground, bracing themselves for the impact they knew was coming. Nick paused to make sure his mask was still in place before firing his last round of bullets into both pipes.

At long last, they shattered, spraying water through the docking station.


	19. Chapter 19

Nick clutched the oxygen mask, making sure it was still strapped in place as the water rose up around him, quickly engulfing him completely. However, he couldn't stop its force from slamming him into the nearby wall, resulting in sharp pain in his back. With a groan, he tried to swim forward, looking for something to hold on to, and found Eleanor pulling him to her.

"There you are. Good job," she whispered. "Listen to me, Nick. Before you get angry at me for doing this, you need to know that this was Siobhan's idea. She wanted us to be safe first." Before Nick could question her, a bright purple light surrounded him, and it hit him immediately.

_We're leaving without them?_

"Wait-" he began, but that was all he could get out before it engulfed him.

Swimming for the door, Siobhan sighed with relief. Eleanor had listened to her and gotten Nick out first. That was all she needed to have peace of mind as she and Delta got themselves to the elevator. It was a long way to go in the short amount of time they had left, and she couldn't help but worry. If they didn't make it before the bombs went off, then not only did they risk their own lives, they risked those of everyone on the lifeboat. That would be worse than just their own deaths, so she thought. Looking behind her, her heart began to pound wildly- Delta was weakening more, minute by minute.

"Not now...please," she said aloud, grabbing the Big Daddy's arm. "Delta, we have to make it out of here...come on, just a bit more." Delta nodded slowly, pushing himself forward with all his strength. How close the elevator was now just seemed to taunt him, and the few meters to go just seemed longer and longer. He couldn't just die on them now. He couldn't...

With one stubborn burst of energy, he flung himself and the girl forward, both of them landing in the elevator at last. It began moving upward immediately, but it was way too slow. What was going on this time?

Eleanor watched from the lifeboat, panicking despite herself. Things had gone so much better when she was planning their escape in her head. At her side, Nick was biting his lip, watching the screen intently. The elevator couldn't have been slower if it tried, huh? With increasing impatience, he gripped the railing, wishing things would just end. At last, the elevator began to speed up, to their delight.

"Okay, you'll be there soon!" she told the two in the elevator. "Just hold tight, and when the door opens, run for it-"

A tremor from above destroyed Eleanor's triumph, and the elevator jolted sharply before stopping altogether. As the doors opened, the two leaped out, finding themselves in one of the glass hallways.

"Shit! The bombs are going off!" Eleanor shouted. "We're gonna fall! Run!"

They only managed to attempt escape for a moment. Turning around a corner, they found themselves face-to-face with the bombs in question, a mess of red and wires. In a last, desperate attempt, Eleanor screamed into the radio once more.

"_You two! Look out-_"

The last transmission was cut off as the bombs detonated, filling the surroundings with a chaotic mess of light and sound. Siobhan could hear herself scream as the glass shattered around her, flinging her out into the ocean. Flailing wildly, she attempted to make something out of the mixture of glass and bubbles, with a bit of blood mixed it.

_I can't see!_

Somewhere nearby, she heard the lifeboat rising, and desperately reached out in hopes of touching it. In response, a hand clamped around her wrist, and she caught sight of Delta, holding onto the boat's railing with one hand and her with the other. With a final burst of strength, he pulled her up, giving her the ability to cling to the railing as well.

_We...we're getting out of here..._

_Author's Note: I may have made a bit of an error, I'll admit. I don't know if Eleanor's ability to transport herself would have been able to take a person with her, so I'm sorry if I messed up in that regard. But technically, this is the last chapter, since I've had chapters 20 and 21 done for ages now. Thanks for reading, everybody! _


	20. Chapter 20

_Delta...Delta, please hold on to my arm for a little longer. _

Siobhan was using her free arm to grasp the edge of the lifeboat, while the half-conscious Delta held on to her with the remainder of his strength. The girl looked out at the tall skyscrapers of Fontaine Futuristics, watching them slowly crumble and collapse to the ocean floor. Something about it brought tears to her eyes, despite the joy she felt at the prospect of escaping.

They would finally have their freedom, but at what cost? They had lost Sinclair, and they were slowly losing Delta. They had killed possible hundreds of people along the way, even if they had lost their minds. Plasmid use and murder had most likely driven part of their sanity away, and that was something they could never regain. Eleanor had alienated her mother, or at least the other way around.

They had destroyed Rapture, and for what?

Delta suddenly let go of her arm, and Siobhan's heart started racing. However, he had simply taken matters into his own hands, and was pulling himself up towards the windows of the lifeboat. Siobhan followed suit, using the railings to clamber up after him before he vanished from her sight.

By the time the two met up again, Siobhan had begun to understand what people meant when they described time as feeling like an eternity. The fear that Delta would black out on his own made her hurry to catch up, grasping desperately at anything that could help her stay at his side. It didn't take a lot of knowledge to know that he probably wouldn't survive for another full day, and she wanted to keep him happy in his final moments. Knowing where his happiness truly was made it easier for her to help him, and as she caught up, she gripped the other Daddy's shoulder and tugged him towards the window.

The room inside the lifeboat was completely flooded, the objects that had been stowed away now floating gently around the inhabitants. In one corner, Siobhan could see the top of the attached bathysphere that was bringing the Little Sisters to safety. In the next, Nick clung weakly to a pole, his eyes revealing his exhaustion as he kept a firm hand on the oxygen mask attached to his face. Siobhan sighed to herself, fighting back a second flood of tears. No one deserved this less than him.

In the center of the room, Sofia swam wildly, one hand clutching her throat. She looked around, desperate for some source of air, and barely seemed to notice her new audience. However, a flash of metal caught her attention, and she finally found herself facing her own daughter.

In that split second, she couldn't help but wonder two things. What had her daughter become? Looking at her now, a Plasmid-injected monster in a metal suit, she wondered if there was a chance that she'd ever be fully human. And the second...was Eleanor's transformation her fault?

Siobhan pressed slightly into the glass, watching mother and daughter face each other. At her side, Delta gained a slight bit of energy, forcing himself to watch out of curiosity.

What would she do?

Eleanor swiftly produced an oxygen mask from the back of her suit, pressing it to her mother's face and holding it there until Sofia grabbed it herself. The older woman's chest heaved a few times before she seemed to understand the implications, and her eyes widened. From the opposite end, Nick watched intently, though a hint of confusion shone through his gaze. Eleanor remained in place, watching through her visor as Sofia's breathing returned to normal with no hint of emotion. She turned away, swimming to the window where Delta and Siobhan waited.

Pressing a gloved hand to the glass, Eleanor kept her gaze on Delta, as if she was communicating with him once again. Delta returned the gesture, though he seemed to be revealing hints of desperation as he looked through at the Big Sister. After a moment, Eleanor nodded, pointed upwards, and swam across the room to ensure Nick's safety. Siobhan glanced upward to find the smallest glimpse of sunlight, still far away from where they were.

With what sounded like a sigh, Delta slid down the glass, almost floating away for a split second. Siobhan grabbed hold of his arm, shaking it with all her might to ensure that he stayed awake. He _had _to. There was no way he could just die, after they had made it all the way up there. Even if he had just wanted to see what Eleanor had become, that didn't mean he could just die once he had. She wouldn't let him.

_Please... just stay here long enough to see your daughter one more time._

The water suddenly rushed around them faster, and Siobhan looked up to find the surface of the water within her reach. The lifeboat surfaced, floating shakily on the waves, and the two Big Daddies finally managed to fling themselves over the railing and onto the open floor.

At long last, they could feel the sun again.


	21. Chapter 21

Eleanor knelt at Delta's side, removing her helmet and setting it next to her. Siobhan and Nick watched silently from the opposite side, knowing that speaking would ruin this final moment between father and daughter. Each of Eleanor's movements were strangely deliberate- moving Delta's arms so that they were crossed on his chest, tenderly wiping the water from his visor, and then preparing the needle attached to her arm. Finally, she sank the needle into his chest, still looking down at him lovingly. Delta shuddered for a moment, before sighing once and going limp. As the tube filled with the red liquid, Eleanor stood, though not before touching the Big Daddy's helmet once more. Without a second thought, she removed the cap and downed it, causing Nick and Siobhan to wince slightly. When she pulled the tube away, she felt herself smile slightly.

_Now he'll always be with me, _she thought. _He'll be at my side when I need him, helping me make the best choices. That's all I needed. _

"Come on," Eleanor said, walking towards the railing of the lifeboat. The two stood as well, looking down at Delta's body for a moment longer before taking a spot at either side of his previous Little Sister.

_I bet he was proud, _Siobhan thought, looking at the tall, composed girl. _He got to see what she had become, and I bet he was proud of it. She's going to be okay. _

Nick glanced behind him, and that glance revealed Sofia Lamb, standing in the doorway of the lifeboat. For a moment they made complete eye contact, but Nick was first to look away. He knew that Eleanor's mother wouldn't dare step out to join them, not after all that had happened. She had been rescued, but that didn't mean she was welcomed. At least, not to him.

"The world isn't ready for us, is it?" Eleanor murmured, leaning on the railing and gazing out at the lighthouse as the distance from it grew further.

"It isn't," Siobhan agreed. "But we're here now, and there isn't much any of us can do." She paused, before reaching up to the screws on her helmet. There was nothing to stop her from removing it now, and she did so. Holding out the helmet to see the reflection in her visor, she was momentarily stunned by what she found- the discolored skin, the thin cuts running down each cheek, and the uneven hair that she assumed was only just growing back. However, she simply held the helmet out and let go, allowing it to sink into the water below. "...That's all I can do," she said suddenly. "I'm stuck in this suit, besides this much." Eleanor nodded sympathetically.

"I see. Life's going to be hard for you until we find a way to get you out. It'll be hard for all of us. But we'll find a way." The other girl nodded, folding her arms over the railing and looking out at the sky. It had definitely been a while since she had seen sunlight, to say the least, and she had forgotten to take it in when she lived on the surface. Beside her, Nick's eyes remained down, thinking about what was happening in the water below. The city would be completely destroyed soon, and it was their fault, in the end. But could the city have been redeemed at all, in the end? Was destruction the way it was supposed to be?

Sofia Lamb remained standing in the doorway to the lifeboat, looking at her daughter and the two that had saved her. It was a strange notion, being back over water when she swore she would never return. And yet, there she was. Alive.

How had that worked out? She knew for a fact how her relationship with Eleanor had plummeted, even if she would never admit it out loud. She had stopped considering her daughter worth rescuing at some point, and she was convinced that the feeling was mutual. But in the end, as she caught a glance of the familiar Big Sister helmet just before the oxygen mask clamped onto her face, she had hit an inner conflict. How _had _Eleanor still come to rescue her, even after they had turned against each other? If that was the case, maybe she could be redeemed.

And maybe Eleanor was still her daughter.

"Hey," Nick murmured, pointing at the doorway suddenly. In Lamb's place, a slowly growing group of Little Sisters was filling the doorway, blinking wildly as their eyes met the sun. Looking slightly disorientated, they moved forward to look out at the ocean, too, talking to each other in hushed voices as they did so. Most of them seemed to be smiling, as if the sight was the most amazing thing in the world to them.

"It's beautiful," one of them whispered, hugging Eleanor's leg. Eleanor nodded in agreement, looking around her at the crowd of children.

"It is," she agreed wistfully. After all, she had never seen it in person before now either.

One of the Sisters had brought out a familiar looking doll, and was holding it out to the older girl. Eleanor immediately recognized it as the crudely-built likeness of her father, created when she had been a lonely Little Sister. She took it cautiously, turning it over a few times in her hand to make sure it was still intact. Oddly enough, nothing at all had changed about it, even after so long.

Still, it was time to say goodbye to it.

The doll slipped through her fingers, the battery on its back causing it to sink immediately after hitting the water. Siobhan looked up at the girl beside her, understanding the motive for letting go of that aspect of her childhood. Because it was time to start anew, reborn on the surface, and by doing that, there was no way they could keep any remnants of their past that they could erase.

_Because we made it out alive._


End file.
